Foundation plans an art museum in Dolapdere

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Istanbul’s Dolapdere neighborhood is to host new Koç art museum.

The Vehbi Koç Foundation is preparing to establish a new contemporary art museum in Istanbul’s Dolapdere neighborhood.

The foundation has chosen London-based Grimshaw Architects to design the building. 

“The creation of Koç Contemporary will result in a landmark building entirely derived from its context,” said a Grimshaw press statement, referring to the use of mosaic tiles in traditional Ottoman architecture, which has provided the inspiration for the exterior, reported the Art Newspaper. 

Dolapdere has traditionally been seen as a run-down area that is home to numerous mechanics shops and mannequin sellers, but changes have begun in the area, spurred especially by the construction of Bilgi University’s main campus in the neighborhood.

The Vehbi Koç Foundation already runs a plethora of museums across Istanbul, including Arter, a contemporary art exhibition space, which opened in 2010. The four-story space housed in an historic building on İstiklal Avenue is owned by Ömer Koç, the vice chairman of Koç Holding, and one of Turkey’s most high-profile contemporary art collectors. 

The Sadberk Hanım Museum, based in the Azaryan Mansion in Istanbul’s northern Sarıyer district, is described as Turkey’s “first private museum” on the foundation’s website. It houses the private collection of Sadberk Koç, the wife of Vehbi Koç. 

The Koç Group, meanwhile, has also signed on to sponsor the Istanbul Biennial until 2017.